The central bank of Latvia’s semi-annual “Payment Radar” report found that the ratio of non-cash and cash payments in the country stood at 71% to 29% as at August 2022.

The ratio of cash and non-cash payments in the previous February 2022 report was 74% to 26%.

Cash availability is a matter of public interest in Latvia, especially in the last two years given the country’s proximity to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Public satisfaction with regards to the possibility to withdraw cash from bank accounts remained stable in the latest report, with 84% of those surveyed being completely or rather satisfied with cash availability.

The figure is the same as in February 2022 and exceeds that of August 2021 by two percentage points. Similarly, there was a small dip in the number of ATMs in Latvia in the past year — from 902 to 894.

Commenting on the central bank’s emphasis on cash availability, Zita Zariņa, Member of the Council of Latvijas Banka, said:

“Why does Latvijas Banka pay particular attention to the issue of cash availability? Because it not only affects the public’s freedom of choice but also strengthens Latvia’s economic security which is especially relevant at present when Russia has launched war on Ukraine.

 

Cash is part of the critical financial sector infrastructure; therefore, we continue our cooperation with the sector to implement measures ensuring access to cash in “times of peace” and be ready to ensure the population’s access to its money in times of crisis.”

Featured image credit: Edited from freepik